Octavia Butler Books at the Bellevue Library

Octavia Butler Books at the Bellevue Library

Octavia Butler was the first African-American woman to come to prominence for writing science fiction. Her novels and short stories uniquely address social issues such as race, gender and class inequality through the subtle lens of imaginative fiction, drawing on her own experiences as well as the historical record. Often dystopian, her alternate realities push the boundaries of what it means to be human in trying times.

In Kindred, Butler's protagonist Dana Franklin finds herself mysteriously transported from California in the 1970s back in time to a slave-holding plantation in Maryland where she must save the life of a white ancestor, and therefore her own life, by learning to pass as one of his slaves.

A landmark series in post-apocalyptic fiction, Parable of the Sower and its sequel Parable of the Talents take place in a not-so-distant future where the American government has lost control and the wealth divide has made life unlivable outside of walled communities. These incredible and realistic books follow Lauren Olamina as she copes with this dystopian reality by collecting her writings into a unique new religion and attempting to rebuild a more equal society based on its tenets.

Check out these titles on the third floor of the Bellevue Neighborhood Library or explore the DC Library catalog to place your own hold on Octavia Butler books from anywhere in the system!